Education Technology

Mathematics lessons for IB® Diploma Programme

Applications and Interpretation | Statistics and Probability

Give Me Five

Objectives

This activity involves describing the centre and spread of a univariate data set by way of a five-figure summary and visually by a box and whisker plot.

Vocabulary

  • Minimum
  • Q1 = Quartile 1
  • Median ( Q2 )
  • Q3 = Quartile 3
  • Maximum
  • Outlier
  • Upper Fence
  • Lower Fence
  • Left / Right Skew
  • Box and Whisker Plot

About the Lesson

This activity explores the calculations of the five figure summary: {min, Q1, median, Q3 and max}. How is an outlier determined? What is positive / negative skew? By physically dragging the maximum point students can determine when the whisker ‘breaks’ and an outlier is created. The connection between the dot plot and the box and whisker plot improves the visual power of this dynamic interaction.